Grand Targhee, WY 12/16/10: Cat Skiing

After two days of hardpack at Jackson Hole, it was great to be back on a foot of fresh snow at Grand Targhee on Wednesday, but cat skiing yesterday was incredible.















I'm probably the only one on this forum who had never been cat skiing, and now I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner.

That was the first place I cat skied back in 1995. If Grand Targhee were not such a snowfall machine it would very marginal in size for cat skiing. It was only 1,500 acres then, and with Dreamcatcher there now it's down to 1,000. Of course since you're there in mid-December it's not very likely to get tracked out. But neither is the lift service I would think.

jamesdeluxe":13earqyc said:

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Pffffffftttt...looks wind affected. [-(

Tony Crocker":tzcon9u5 said:

If Grand Targhee were not such a snowfall machine it would very marginal in size for cat skiing. It was only 1,500 acres then, and with Dreamcatcher there now it's down to 1,000. Of course since you're there in mid-December it's not very likely to get tracked out. But neither is the lift service I would think.

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In the past, whenever I looked over at the cat-skiing terrain from the top of Sacagawea (Dreamcatcher is the main lift that leaves from the base village), I always thought that it looked underwhelming, but it certainly didn't feel that way when I was skiing it. Every run was untracked until the last 200 verts (we made 11 descents of approximately 2,000 feet).

I was the only non-member of a group of people who have been doing three straight days of December cat-skiing there for years, and when I asked if they've ever run out of untouched terrain to ski because it hadn't snowed in the previous few days, they all laughed and said "never happened!"

You're not the only one...but with Marc as a guide and me hitting Alta just right most of the time...haven't needed a cat...not that I'm not going to do it...maybe this year!

jamesdeluxe":1rpde1cw said:

when I asked if they've ever run out of untouched terrain to ski because it hadn't snowed in the previous few days, they all laughed and said "never happened!"

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I'll refer to the Alta data showing that 25% of winter weeks have no days with 6+ inches new snow. Targhee is more consistent but also gets ~10% less than Alta.

Other factors at work here:
1) How many cats/skiers? Island Lake has ~7,000 acres, but with 36 skiers a day it can get tracked out in about 2 weeks. Less if some of the acreage is off limits due to rain or lack of early season cover. I'm guessing in mid-December Targhee runs only one cat and maybe that cat isn't full. Do not extrapolate to February with 2 full cats IMHO.
2) Kingslug alludes to the other point. Mid-December is so quiet I would think untracked would not to be hard to find within lift service at Targhee.
3) What is the day price for cat skiing at Targhee now? Is it lower in mid-December because it's slow season?
I would weigh the price/value equation based upon points 2) and 3) above.

Nice report. I just looked at the terrain and never thought it was worth after they built the Sac lift.

I think cat skiing....I think British Columbia. So many mountains, so little investment for lifts, such a requiremnet for cats.

Maybe the US could be an economic superpower again? Until then, the Canadians do not have a bunch of bad real estate loans - like they do not have warm, condo-infested areas like AZ, FL, CA, NV causing a problem - and cat skiing will remain full price $1 CAD = $1 US. I loved it when everything was 33-25% off...

ChrisC":2rhcaxnl said:

I think cat skiing....I think British Columbia.

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This is how I've voted with my time and $, and will continue even at full price.

I have looked up the answer to my question #3 above:

Snowcat Adventure Rates
Full Day (9:00 AM - 4:00 PM): 2010-11 $349 (includes hot beverages, snacks & lunch).

3 Night Early Season Snowcat Adventure Package
One day ticket for a full day of lift skiing, one full day Snowcat Adventure and three nights of lodging starting at just $260.00 per person. Based on quad occupancy. $344.00 per person for double occupancy. Based on occupancy in Teewinot Lodge.
Valid Nov 26, 2010 through and including Dec 23, 2010.

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So jamesdeluxe is a smart shopper IMHO, the above looks like a good deal. But $349 mid-season for

600 acres ... two snow cats operate daily (conditions permitting) with a twelve person capacity on each cat reserved in advance

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I would be skeptical. I'd be more inclined toward the 10,000 acres at Steamboat or the more exciting terrain at Mt. Bailey.